FORT MYERS, Fla.—For the Red Sox in 2012, there was no doubt that bad chemistry led to a lot of losing. Their 93 losses, the most in Boston since 1965, were exceeded only by the number of headlines detailing their clubhouse controversies.

Understandably, the club set about its offseason with improving team chemistry as a top priority.

Spring training: Jonny Gomes has had a knack for finding teams that exceed expectations. He's hoping for the same in Boston. (AP Photo)

The Red Sox started by getting rid of manager Bobby Valentine, the man held most responsible for their dismal season, and replacing him with John Farrell, a confidant of general manager Ben Cherington. Of the eight newcomers they’ve added to the projected 25-man roster, at least six have established reputations for being “good guys in the clubhouse.”

The result has produced a spring training at Fenway South that already has become known as Camp Tranquility. “We’re going to get all of the guys who play guitar, and there’s several, to sing ‘Kumbaya,’ ” one Red Sox official said Monday. He was joking, sort of.

Seriously, the Red Sox believe their offseason moves have turned around what no one denies was an unhappy place in 2012. Former ace Pedro Martinez, recently hired as a special assistant to the GM, brought up last year’s problems unsolicited in a session with the media Monday. New backup catcher David Ross said that when the club was recruiting him, Cherington told him, “They had had some problems and wanted to go back to the way it was where everybody cares about each other.”

As someone who never has been or will be a fan of the touchy-feely, I wonder if the Sox’s more caring clubhouse will make that much of a difference. Put me in that camp that believes a team that wins is a team with good chemistry. Like Tigers manager Jim Leyland says, “I’m not looking for leaders. I’m looking for guys who can hit. If you can hit .330, you’re probably a damn good leader.”

Red Sox slugger David Ortiz, who has spent far more time in a clubhouse than I ever will, isn’t so sure. “Having everybody is on the same page will definitely help you win games,” he said. “Chemistry comes first.”

Though Cherington has led this culture change in Boston, he doesn’t see it quite the same. “Talented players come first,” Cherington said. “When those talented players are good teammates, there tends to be a good vibe in the clubhouse, too.”

But are good clubhouse guys really that hard to find on the free-agent market, especially when you’re willing to overpay as the Red Sox have done? Sure, Ross is a great guy but so is Gerald Laird, a catcher with comparable skills who also was a free agent (and has replaced Ross as the backup in Atlanta). Is new right fielder Shane Victorino any better in the clubhouse than Torii Hunter, a free agent who landed in Detroit? Is Ryan Dempster a better teammate than Jeremy Guthrie, a comparable starter who signed for considerably less with the Royals? I don’t think so.

Cherington doesn’t necessarily disagree. “It’s hard to get to the big leagues unless you’re a solid teammate,” he said. “To get through the grind of the minor leagues is hard to do if you’re isolated. You need help along the way.”

For the second-year GM, the trick is finding players “who embrace the challenge of playing in Boston.” A catchphrase around the Red Sox this spring is based on “the tremendous highs of playing in Boston.” The attention and the pressure, of course, are just as great when you lose, though not nearly as pleasant.

”We want guys who are excited about grabbing that challenge,” Cherington said. “You don’t ever really know until they’re here but you can find out a lot by watching them play and talking to people.”

Cherington is banking that outfielder/DH Jonny Gomes is up for the Fenway experience. Though Gomes has spent most of his career in a backup role, the Red Sox gave him his first multiyear contract, a two-year, $10 million deal. His leadership and winning history have paid off. In the past five seasons, Gomes has been on three different teams that won the division (Rays, Reds, A’s), each time beginning the season as an underdog.

After the success of the underdog A’s last year, Gomes found himself in an interesting position when the Red Sox called. “We sprayed champagne twice last year,” he said of his hometown team’s magical ride. “We went to Game 5 (of the ALDS) and almost beat Justin Verlander with a $41 million payroll. Coming over here, you know, was different. These guys finished in last place.

“But from the day I walked in, you’d think these guys won a division title. It’s been that kind of attitude.”

OK, so the chemistry seems to have turned around. How much that helps the W-L record remains to be seen.